What Equipment Do You Need to Be a Sushi Chef?

By Stuart Turner

Anyone can learn to make sushi, I firmly believe that. Real sushi chefs in Japan apprentice themselves to a master sushi chef for many years, so it's unlikely we'll ever reach that stage, but making delicious sushi at home is not unachievable.

I'm not going to lie though, it does take a little practice! When you first make some maki rolls it's likely to be a little wobbly.

However, if you use the right equipment which is good quality, you're going to have a much better success rate. If you're serious about making sushi, then there's a few things you should definitely own in your kitchen! Let's take a look at some of the most essential.

A Rolling Mat

This is a mat made from bamboo that helps you make a perfectly round maki roll. the good news is, even a cheap bamboo rolling mat will do the job! Ours are just £1.25.

A Good Knife

If you have tried to make maki rolls before, then you might know exactly why you need a good knife! Sushi knives need to be sharp to cut a good roll. If you try to cut a maki roll with a blunt knife, it will squish the sushi down before it cuts it, leading to rolls that aren't round!

A Rice Cooker

I know rice cookers are expensive, but it's a great investment if you love Japanese food. Sushi rice is really hard to get right, as it needs to be sticky and perfectly cooked, then totally cooled before you use it. If you make rice in the morning in your rice cooker, you can leave it to do it's thing whilst you go to work. When you come back, you'll have perfectly cooked rice ready to go!

A Tamago Pan

A tamago pan is the only way you will be able to make a great Japanese style omelette. This is important if you want to make tamago nigiri, but it's also good for making omelette rolls. The pan is the perfect shape for making square, neat omelette.